Bressi Ranch Clubhouse readies for partial opening mid-June

CARLSBAD — Many are counting the days for the new Boys and Girls Club site at the Bressi Ranch to make its debut. To date, the gymnasium and teen center are finished, but the main building has more work to be done.
But still, the unfinished part hasn’t hampered the Boys and Girls Club’s excitement to offer three sport camps for the kids, the first being the Brad Holland Basketball Camp beginning in mid-June.
“It’s been a challenge raising money to build this new clubhouse, especially in these challenging economic times, but we are very pleased to be able to throw open our doors, at least partially, and begin offering quality yet affordable programming to even more children,” said Pat Maldi, director of marketing and special events.
Maldi said it’s planning to open the Bressi Clubhouse on a limited basis and will be operating the Brad Holland Basketball Camp, an All-Sports Camp, and the Carlsbad Juniors Volleyball Camp.
The All-Sports Camp, Maldi said, will hone in on a different type of sport each day. The volleyball clinics, however, will have a double focus. One will be for girls from fourth grade to middle school, while the other will be a high school prep camp through the varsity level.
Bressi Ranch started its construction in November 2008. Since then, it has invested $4.5 million into the project. The Boys and Girls Club needs an additional $1.2 million to complete phase two, the main building facility.
Once phase two is finished, Maldi said the new clubhouse would be a jewel for the community’s kids.
While the sport camps at Bressi Ranch will offer its own uniqueness, Maldi said she believes the Brad Holland Basketball Camp will be the most sought after this summer. The camp, offering four separate one-week sessions, has a running time of four hours per day. It is open to both boys and girls between the ages of 7 to 14.
“(Brad) is very well known as a successful motivator, teacher and coach,” Maldi said, adding how Holland is also the chief executive officer at the Boys and Girls Club of Carlsbad. “His commitment to excellence has been apparent throughout his career.”
A former player with the Los Angeles Lakers, Holland has earned star-studded coaching praise, including positions at University of San Diego and the West Coast Conference.
“There are two things that we want to accomplish, and one is that we want the kids to have a lot of fun, because basketball is a lot of fun,” Holland said. “And two, we want them to walk away from the week having learned some fundamentals and things they can take with them to work on and be a better basketball player.”
No stranger to basketball camps, Holland still enjoys seeing young players getting better at their game and have fun doing it.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for kids to learn from the best, at a very reasonable price,” Maldi said. “Brad is planning to spend lots of one-on-one time with each camper while building solid fundamentals that children can build on for the rest of their playing career.”
While Bressi Ranch keeps busy with its sport camps, its Village and La Costa branches will offer Kids Camps. Children will have an array of things to do such as taking part in theme weeks and wallet-friendly field trips.
Visit bgccarlsbad.org for more information on specific dates, times, cost. To register, call (760) 729-0956, or e-mail info@bgccarlsbad.org.